Sailing the Sea of Cortez, Hawaii, and Alaska, Mike Kalil and Stephanie Propp
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Release Date: 02/02/2026
Sailing the Sea of Cortez, Hawaii, and Alaska, Mike Kalil and Stephanie Propp
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Mike and Stephanie were in the Sea of Cortez when I interviewed them, aboard their Saga 43, Stella Blue. They bought her in British Columbia and sailed her south to California and Mexico, then to Hawaii, Alaska, down the west coast, and returned to the Sea of Cortez. We talk about Mexico and the Sea of Cortez, wildlife, their boat, the solent rig, electronics, radar, anchor lights, how they selected the Saga 43, sailing from Mexico to Hawaii, flipping a dinghy duing a beach landing, the kindness of the Mexican people, anchoring in Hawaii, sailing from Hawaii to Alaska, cruising in Alaska,...
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Sailing in Heavy Weather with Ryan Rayfield, Sailing Libra
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Ryan Rayfield recently sailed with novice crew from Block Island to Bermuda in November and faced some heavy weather, which he dealt with effectively in his 60' ketch, Libra. Ryan learned to sail on Lake Martin in Alabama, and now runs Sail Libra, an offshore charter operation in the North Atlantic Ocean. He is a USCG-licensed captain, father, and lifelong mariner. We talk about learning to sail on a makeshift Sunfish in Alabama, the advantages of sailing a ketch, light-air sails, his boat - a 1969 60' Bill Tripp center-cockpit ketch built by Abeking & Rasmussen, centerboards,...
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Sailing from the POV of a Former Commercial Fisherman, Joe Drago
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Joe Drago used to be a commercial fisherman in New England and now sails a Cape Dory 45 ketch based in New York and runs Sailing Resolution, a sailing adventure charter business. We talk about how he got involved in commercial fishing, lessons about seamanship learned from commercial fishing, fishing in foul weather, being washed overboard while longlining in the Gulf Stream, his rescue, safety gear, responding to a mayday, things commercial fishermen wish sailors did differently, towing signals, radar and AIS, sleeping while singlehanding, communication with commercial vessels, the Gulf...
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Sailing to Japan with Robin Toozs-Hobson
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Robin Toozs-Hobson is a long-time sailor and delivery skipper based in St. Lucia. He and I have sailed together a few times and had some great adventures. He recently did a delivery of an Excess catamaran from St. Lucia to Japan. We talk about living in St. Lucia, living abroad and dealing with the passport and banking and mail, monohull sailing vs catamaran sailing, favorite boats, Excess catamarans, sailing from St Lucia to Japan, favorite stops along the way, the Panama Canal, diving with hamerhead sharks in Galapagos, locations in Japan, the Japanese people and culture, dealing with...
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Repairing an Aluminum Hull at KM Yachtbuilders, Hylke Boersma
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Hylke Boersma is a project manager for refits at KM Yachtbuilders. He is currently working on the repair of a Boreal 52 that suffered hull damage after being struck by another boat while on a mooring. We talk about using a 3D-scanner to asses damage, repairing an aluminum hull, repairing aluminum vs steel, care and maintenance of aluminum hulls, painting aluminum hulls, advantages of building in aluminum, common mistakes people make when buying sailboats, deck materials, diesel engines, electric motors, electrical systems on aluminum boats, what buyers should know about aluminum vs...
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Sailing Solo to Seven Continents, Harry Anderson
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Harry Anderson is the only person to have both flown solo and sailed solo to all seven continents. He is also the author of "Sailing 7 Continents Solo." We talk about his route, his boats (a Bavaria 37 and an Alures 40.9), sailing with a centerboard, heaving-to, HF radio, VHF with wireless remote handset, anchoring, shore lines, generating electricity, Deception Island, getting permits to go to Antarctica, katabatic winds, Puerto Montt, Cocos Keeling, friendly people, favorite places, Namibia, beautiful moments, safety, heaters, the NW passage, his books, and more. photos and links are on the ...
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Willem Nieland, Globemaster Yachts, Designing Aluminum Sailboats
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Willem Nieland has been designing yachts for 35 years. He designs Globemaster yachts, as well as custom aluminum expedition sailboats, motor yachts, and residential yachts. His designs are know for efficent and ergonomic use of space, comfort, and excellent offshore sailing characteristics. We talk about design elements he likes in a boat, his boat, sailing around The Netherlands, designing boats, the Northwest Passage, the expedition boat Necton, twin saildrives, his Globemaster yachts, using a lifting keel, the Globemaster 45 and some of its features, advantages and disadvantages of dual...
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Onboard Galiana with Tapio and Crew
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Tapio Lehtinen and his crew were sailing in the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers from the Canary Islands to St. Lucia when we talked. The interview was conducted in the cockpit of Galiana, a 1972 Swan 55 yawl, while underway. I spoke with each of the crew, most of whom were paying customers. Tapio is taking paying crew on ocean training passages and various offshore races this year, as well as the 2027 Ocean Globe Race. Ifyou are interested in sailing with Tapio on Galiana, email me at and I will put you in touch with Tapio, as well as his schedule and prices. Photos of Galiana and crew are on the...
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Viivi Moisio, Sailing in the Ocean Globe Race on Galiana
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Viivi was part of Tapio Lehtinen's crew onboard Galiana for the 2023 Ocean Globe Race. This race was the subject of Tapio's book "Pole Star and Albatross." Viivi is now building a Class Globe 5.80 to sail in the 2026 Mini Globe Transat. We talk about learning to sail, training for the Ocean Globe Race (OGR), the sinking of Asteria, favorite moments in the OGR, rounding Cape Horn, fear, difficult moments, sail repair, maintaining a positive spirit on Galiana, diving to fix the hydrogenerator offshore, steering across the finish line of the OGR, the unexpected, the Southern Ocean, Galiana,...
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Andrew Evans, Singlehanded Sailing Two Points West of Sanity
Offshore Sailing and Cruising with Paul Trammell
Andrew Evans is best known for his book "Singlehanded Sailing, Thoughts Tips Techniques and Tactics." His most recent book is "Singlehanded Sailing, Two Points West of Sanity." The book is mostly about his ill-fated passage attempting to sail from Victoria, Canada, to the start of the Transpac in San Francisco. During the journey, he experienced falling overboard, taking on water, total loss of his electrical system, great hardship, exhaustion, and a week of hallucinations. In this episode, Andrew tells the story of this journey, starting in Victoria, Canada and finishing with his rescue in...
info_outlineMike and Stephanie were in the Sea of Cortez when I interviewed them, aboard their Saga 43, Stella Blue. They bought her in British Columbia and sailed her south to California and Mexico, then to Hawaii, Alaska, down the west coast, and returned to the Sea of Cortez.
We talk about Mexico and the Sea of Cortez, wildlife, their boat, the solent rig, electronics, radar, anchor lights, how they selected the Saga 43, sailing from Mexico to Hawaii, flipping a dinghy duing a beach landing, the kindness of the Mexican people, anchoring in Hawaii, sailing from Hawaii to Alaska, cruising in Alaska, Glacier Bay, glaciers, swimming moose, staying warm in the north, dealing with mold, cleaning the rigging with vinegar, mounting a Hydrovane, bucket-list destinations, and more.
Links and photos are on the podcast shownotes page
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